DEAN:
HEY THERE STAR GAZERS.

I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FOR THE CINCINNATI
OBSERVATORY.

JAMES:
AND I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA

SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA.

WE'RE HERE TO HELP YOU FIND YOUR WAY AROUND
THE SKY TONIGHT.

THE SUMMER TRIANGLE
IS RIDING HIGH IN THE SKY THIS WEEK AND IF

YOUVE WATCHED OUR SHOW OVER THE YEARS,
YOU'LL KNOW THAT WE OFTEN TALK ABOUT TWO OF

ITS CONSTELLATIONS; CYGNUS THE SWAN AND LYRA
THE HARP.

DEAN:
BUT THERES A THIRD CONSTELLATION THAT

WE HAVEN'T REALLY DISCUSSED IN DETAIL AND
THATS AQUILA THE EAGLE.

JAMES:
THATS RIGHT, DEAN!

SO THIS WEEK, WE'VE DECIDED TO SHOW AQUILA
SOME LOVE

AND INTRODUCE YOU TO THE CONSTELLATION THAT
REPRESENTS ZEUS

PET EAGLE.

LETS SHOW YOU!

JAMES:
OK, WE HAVE OUR SKIES SET UP FOR AN HOUR AFTER

SUNSET,
FACING SOUTHEAST.

LOOKING HIGH IN THE SKY, WE SEE THE SUMMER
TRIANGLE.

THE THREE BRIGHTEST STARS ARE VEGA, ALTAIR
AND DENEB.

WE'RE GOING TO FOCUS ON ALTAIR, BECAUSE THAT
IS THE BRIGHTEST STAR IN THE CONSTELLATION

AQUILA THE EAGLE.

DEAN:
AQUILA IS BEST KNOWN AS THE PET EAGLE BELONGING

TO ZEUS,
THE KING OF THE GREEK GODS.

AQUILA HAD THE JOB OF HOLDING ZEUS LIGHTNING
BOLTS, BUT HE WAS ALSO KNOWN FOR KIDNAPPING

GANYMEDE AND BRINGING HIM TO MOUNT OLYMPUS
TO BE ZEUS DIVINE DRINK SERVER.

JAMES:
THE BRIGHTEST STAR IN AQUILA IS ALTAIR.

ALTAIR IS
17 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH AND IS ONE

OF THE CLOSEST STARS VISIBLE TO THE
NAKED EYE.

DEAN:
ALTAIR HAS THE RARE DISTINCTION OF BEING THE

FASTEST ROTATING STAR IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

OUR SUN FOR EXAMPLE TAKES 25 DAYS TO SPIN
ONCE, BUT ALTAIR SPINS ONCE IN ONLY 9 HOURS!

THIS HAS RESULTED IN ALTAIR BEING SO DISTORED
THAT IT RESEMBLES AN M&M.

DEAN:
THE SEMI-BRIGHT STAR ABOVE ALTAIR IS TARAZED.

ITS AN ORANGE GIANT STAR 460 LIGHT YEARS FROM
US AND OVER 2500 TIMES AS BRIGHT

AS OUR SUN.

JAMES:
THE SEMI-BRIGHT STAR BELOW ALTAIR IS ALSHAIN

ITS A BINARY STAR SYSTEM 45 LIGHT YEARS FROM
EARTH.

THE PRIMARY STAR,
IS A YELLOW SUBGIANT ONLY 30% MORE MASSIVE

THAN OUR SUN, AND THREE TIMES THE RADIUS.

DEAN:
THE SMALLER COMPANION STAR IS A RED DWARF

ONLY A THIRD THE MASS OF THE SUN WITH ONLY
2% OUR SUNS LUMINOSITY.

TALK ABOUT A TINY STAR!

JAMES:
YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED TO KNOW THAT AQUILA

THE EAGLE HAS 143 STARS THAT ASTRONOMERS CONSIDER
NOTEWORTHY.

HOWEVER, ONLY A HANDFUL OF THEM YOU CAN SEE
FROM A LIGHT POLLUTED CITY.

DEAN:
AQUILA IS ALSO ONE OF THOSE CONSTELLATIONS

WHERE THE BAYER DESIGNATION GETS A LITTLE
WEIRD.

DEVELOPED BY ASTRONOMER JOHANN BAYER, THE
GREEK LETTER DESIGNATION FOR STARS MOST OF

THE TIME WAS BASED
ON THE STARS BRIGHTNESS;

ALPHA BEING THE BRIGHTEST, BETA THE SECOND
BRIGHTEST

AND SO ON.

WELL, IN AQUILA THATS NOT THE CASE.

JAMES:
THE SEVEN BRIGHTEST STARS IN ORDER OF BRIGHTNESS

ARE,

1.

ALTAIR IS
ALPHA

2.

TARAZED IS
GAMMA

3.

OKAB IS -
ZETA

4.

ALMIZAN 3 IS
THETA

5.

ALMIZAN 1 IS
DELTA

6.

AL THALI-MAIN PRIOR
IS LAMBDA

AND LASTLY,
7.

ALSHAIN IS
BETA.

DEAN:
WEIRD.

JAMES:
DID YOU KNOW THAT AQUILA THE EAGLE THAT WE

RECOGNIZE TODAY
IS ACTUALLY A COMBINATION OF THE ORIGINAL

AQUILA AND
A NOW OBSOLETE CONSTELLATION THAT WAS NEARBY?

DEAN:
THATS RIGHT, JAMES.

LIKE BOOTES THE HERDSMAN
(THAT NOW INCLUDES THE DEFUNCT CONSTELLATION

QUANDRANS MURALIS), AQUILA ACQUIRED THE STARS
OF THE EQUALLY DEFUNCT CONSTELLATION ANTINOUS

.

JAMES:
ANTINOUS WAS CREATED BY THE ROMAN EMPEROR

HADRIAN IN 132 A.D.

IN HONOR OF HIS YOUTHFUL COMPANION OF THE
SAME NAME .

AS THE CENTURIES PASSED, ANTINOUS WAS LATER
DEMOTED TO AN ASTERISM WITHIN AQUILA AND EVENTUALLY

DISCARDED WHEN THE INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL
UNION FORMALIZED THE CONSTELLATIONS IN 1930.

DEAN:
THE STARS ALMIZAN 3, ALMIZAN 2 AND ALSHAIN

ARE WHERE ANTINOUS USED TO BE.

YOU CAN FIND THEM IN THE EASTERN PORTION OF
AQUILA.

DEAN:
SO CHECK OUT AQUILA THE EAGLE AND IT'S MANY

INTERESTING STARS TONIGHT.

JAMES:
WOW!

SO MANY NEAT THINGS TO SEE WHEN YOU REMEMBER
TO

BOTH:
KEEP LOOKING UP!